India captain Shubman Gill has indicated that Prasidh Krishna is likely to share the new ball with the seasoned Mohammed Siraj in the first Test against Sri Lanka starting Saturday. Gurnoor Brar is also being considered to play the Galle Test, even as the visitors are likely to go with three left-arm slow bowlers—two orthodox spinners in Ravindra Jadeja and Manav Suthar, and a wrist-spinner in Kuldeep Yadav.
There are reports that Devdutt Padikkal may get to play at No. 3 in the absence of Sai Sudharsan, while the under-pressure Dhruv Jurel is expected to bat in the middle order despite his poor returns in the last few Tests.
The match will only be India’s second Test match of 2026. The first game in the format that India played this year was against Afghanistan in June, which was a one-sided contest that ended within two-and-a-half days.
India's possible playing XI combinations
Sri Lankan cricket over many years has consistently managed to produce spin-friendly pitches for Test cricket. This time, too, it is expected to be no different.
The Indian squad for the series consists of four spin bowlers: Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Manav Suthar, and Saransh Jain. As the Indian Test team usually plays with the template of six batters and five bowlers, one could expect to see at least three spinners alongside the two seamers. Ravindra Jadeja providing depth in the batting order could be one of the three spinners, alongside Kuldeep Yadav and a choice between Manav Suthar and Saransh Jain. It is to be noted that Saransh is also handy with the bat.
In the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, the fast bowling will be spearheaded by Mohammed Siraj, alongside Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, and Auqib Nabi. Siraj could be one of the two seamers in the playing XI, with the other seamer being a choice among the remaining three.
Indian batters in recent years have remarkably struggled in spin-friendly conditions. This will be a major concern the team will look to address through this series. Team India has travelled to Sri Lanka with a group of net bowlers, indicating that the team management aims to improve the performance of batters against spin bowling in the spin-friendly conditions of the Teardrop Nation.
The Indian opening duo of KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal are once again expected to open the batting. The skipper Shubman Gill will play at No. 4 after Devdutt Padikkal. It will be interesting to see if Rishabh Pant gets the backing from the team management to play in the middle order as a fourth- or fifth-down batter. Dhruv Jurel is also expected to play in the middle order.
India's squad for the Sri Lanka Tests:
Shubman Gill (Captain), KL Rahul (Vice-Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Devdutt Padikkal, Saransh Jain, Auqib Nabi, Sarfaraz Khan.
Sri Lanka squad:
Dhananjaya de Silva (Captain), Lahiru Udara, Nishan Madushka, Kamindu Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Pasindu Sooriyabandara, Sonal Dinusha, Niroshan Dickwella, Ramesh Mendis, Prabath Jayasuriya, Keshara Nuwantha, Milan Rathnayake, Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Vishwa Fernando, Dilshan Madushanka.
